Home > People's rights > Freedom of Information > Practitioners > Full exemptions guidance > Section 35 > Chapter 4

FOI full exemptions guidance

sections:
Intro | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 |

Section 35 - Formulation of Government Policy

Chapter 04: Interrelationship with other exemptions

4.1 When considering the withholding of information under section 35, it is likely that almost any of the other exemptions may be relevant. If there is uncertainty how far the information requested relates to the areas specified in subsection (1) consideration should be given to whether or not it falls under one of the other exemptions under the Act. As noted above there is a particularly close relationship between all of section 35 and section 36.

4.2 Like all information covered by the Act, information which falls within section 35 may fall within:

the exemption in section 21 on information available elsewhere (for example in the annexes to a White Paper); or
the exemption in section 22 on information which it is planned to publish in the future (for example where a department has been working up a White Paper).

4.3 So far as the content of the information is concerned, you should be particularly alert to the possibility that it may be covered by the exemptions in:

section 26 on defence;
section 27 on international relations;
section 28 on relations within the United Kingdom;
section 29 on the economy;
section 39 on environmental information
section 40 on personal data;

4.4 Section 35(1)(c) on information relating to the provision of advice by any of the Law Officers is also related closely to the following other exemptions:

Section 30 on investigations and proceedings by public authorities
Section 31 on law enforcement
Section 42 on legal professional privilege